Encouraging Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Through Intuitive Theory Building

Derek Powell, Stanford University

Ellen Markman, Stanford University

Abstract

Although routinely informed of the benefits of fruits and
vegetables, Americans eat far short of the recommended amounts. Instead of just
telling people that fruits and vegetables are healthy, providing a compelling
causal and teleological explanatory framework could increase both people’s
conviction about their health benefits and commitment to increasing the amount
and variety of fruits and vegetables they consume. Our brief intervention: (1)
emphasizes that fruits and vegetables have thousands of health-promoting
phytochemicals, well beyond just vitamins, (2) describes clear causal mechanisms
by which these foods ensure cellular health, (3) draws an analogy between the
benefits of plant-based foods and the power of plant-derived medicines, and (4)
explains that plants contain abundant nutrients because they must manufacture
these chemicals for their own survival. This novel intervention improved
understanding and increased participants’ intentions to eat more fruits and
vegetables, illustrating how intuitive theories can shape motivation for
behavioral change.